Chatters of students echoed across the vast lecture hall, filling the air with a sense of camaraderie that reminded Circe of her days in college. Most people sat in pairs or groups, while a few chose solitude. Not a single student seemed out of place as they busied themselves while awaiting the professor's arrival.

The room itself had a modern design, though constructed from natural materials fitting for a fantasy world: Fine, lacquered wood with a mixture of white marble, and tall, arching windows where sunlight soothed the atmosphere with its warm rays. Right at the front, a lone podium stood atop a slightly elevated platform, occupied by three blank blackboards waiting to be written on.

Circe and Zeke chose their seats right in the middle, where only two other students sat while facing each other, seemingly too engrossed in their conversation to notice them taking their place by their side.

They didn't pay much attention to the boy and girl pair either, and faced the front while quietly sipping on their drinks. Looking around, others seemed to have brought their own beverages as well, most having metallic covers to prevent any inopportune accidents.

Not too long after they arrived, the students’ wild chitchats abruptly ceased, and in their place, taps of heels against wood resounded throughout the hall.

A middle-aged woman rose to the podium, laying her heavy books on it with a solid ‘thud’. She gazed up at them, her ruby-like eyes as sharp as thorns on rose bushes, and her long, blazing hair held a hint of white on several strands.

“Good afternoon students,” Age resounded within her frigid voice, a tinge of wisdom that could only be found in enlightened sages. Her neat, pearly robes clearly reflected that status. “My name is Amelia de Roselle, I am a professor in Spell Theory. Although we have some new faces in this faculty,” Her sharp, fiery gaze briefly landed on Zeke, “I will not adjust my teachings for their comfort. Now, let us start today's lesson.”

Without further delay, she turned to the blackboards, pulling a piece of chalk from its box. “We're starting on Page 67 of Spell Theory two.” While the students scrambled to get their books out, the professor calmly drew on the blackboard.

By the time Zeke and Circe placed their books on the table, she'd already finished and turned towards the class. “As you know,” Amelia stepped to the side, letting the students get a better view of what she'd written, “A mage can achieve a variety of effects with the same spell, simply by changing a few letters in their incantation.”

She exchanged the chalk in her hand for a pointer stick, using it to show the class two identical magic circles she'd drawn on the board. “I assume that none of you slacked off during the academy's reconstruction,” Amelia's piercing gaze froze the room, “Can anyone answer what these magic circles do?”

Everyone remained silent, some glancing at their friends while others shook their heads meekly. No one knew the answer to her question, and Amelia's unchanging expression meant that she expected as much.

“I didn't have high hopes anyway,” Unexpectedly, she turned to Zeke, “Silas? Since you've managed to transfer here by the Grand Magician's recommendation, care to answer?”

Now all eyes shot towards him. Zeke remained calm as he briefly glanced at Circe, who in turn averted her gaze with a sheepish look on her face. Great, even my only friend abandons me, he thought to himself before quickly shifting his attention back to the front.

“...I am not sure,” Zeke's gaze shuffled between the two circles. They might appear identical at first glance, but he quickly noted the slight difference in one of the outer rings. “Though I believe they're both fire spells…Perhaps ‘Flames of Glory’, to be exact.”

Amelia raised a questioning eyebrow as the students began whispering amongst each other. “And what is your reason for believing so?”

Without skipping a beat, he replied, “Magic circles are formed from strings of words, condensed so tightly that they appear like thin threads,” Zeke silently thanked the Witch's Codex as he continued, “We can decipher those words to determine what spell we're dealing with. However, the forms they take also correlate to the elements of a spell. Using both information, it's a fast way to analyze a spell without the need to unravel an entire circle.”

Although her expression remained the same, a hint of intrigue flashed across Amelia's gaze. “So you're saying that the shape of a magic circle can determine a spell's element? On what ground? ‘Geyser' and ‘Spitfire’ both have similar geometrical structures.”

“You said it yourself, professor,” Zeke's brows slightly arched, “They are similar, but they're not the same. Looking at a magic circle is like looking at art. While there are multiple interpretations of art, the emotions you feel behind it are largely the same.”

He kept on answering, too engrossed in their exchange to notice everyone's intense stares, “The water magic, Geyser, may have a fierce design like the fire magic's Spitfire, but it still retains the unique grace and flow of a water spell.”

There was a moment of silence, “...Alright. Now, answer this question,” Amelia tapped the pointer against the closest circle to her; the one Zeke noted had an odd outer ring. “These two circles, what are their differences and how do they affect the outcome of the spell?”

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Zeke took a moment to think, gaze traced downwards to the open book before him. Nothing on it proved useful to the question, though he hadn't intended on searching for answers there anyway.

Eventually, he looked back up and replied. “I'm sorry professor, but I have reasons to doubt that you are using the standardized version of ‘Flames of Glory’.”

Amelia's brows twitched as anger flashed across her features. “Are you implying that I am using an illegal version of an authorized spell?”

Unknowingly, Zeke had tightened his fists, anxiety rising to his throat. If a mage unaffiliated with the magic tower goes around using a magic circle they came up with on their own, the charges they face may vary from a large fine to years of imprisonment.

It may not sound like a huge deal, but for mages, being accused of magic-related crimes wound their egos. Despite this, Zeke nodded in confirmation. “I am confident. It's similar enough to the standard version, but I can see that both of them are adjusted ever so slightly.”

“Elaborate.” This time, Amelia's voice lacked any hint of the anger she showed before, now returning to her usual monotone.

“The one to my left has an extra sentence written in the inner rings,” Zeke explained as he stared intensely at the blackboard, “I'll need to take a closer look to see what the change is exactly…but as for the one to my right,” He narrowed his eyes, “One of the outer rings seem to have been taken from another spell. If I have to guess, that one will explode in your face if you try casting it.”

Amelia could barely contain her satisfaction as her lips broke into a wide grin, “As expected of Lord Solren's apprentice. On top of knowing topics covered by third and fourth years, your answers also lacked any hint of flaw,” she nodded in affirmation, making Zeke let loose a sigh of relief as the professor shifted her focus to the blackboard, “Yes, these two circles are adjusted variations of the intermediate spell, Flames of Glory. Worry not, I have been given permission from the Magic Tower to use these in today's lesson.”

Her expression suddenly turned dark, “However,” the ice in her tone sent shivers down the students’ spine, “If I catch anyone trying to use these once this class is over. I will personally make sure you pay the consequences.”

But just as abruptly as it came, her stern expressions softened. “Though I doubt anyone here would be that much of an idiot to try it,” she shrugged, “Especially when Mister Salvador had already stated that one of them will explode the moment you try casting it.”

While the tension from Professor Roselle's rigorous questioning still hung in the air, it slowly faded away as time went on. She seamlessly eased the performance at the start of class into a full blown lecture, leaving no opening for anyone's attention to slip away.

Unless that person happens to be Circe, who had been staring at her twiddling thumbs for the past half hour while Zeke jolted down notes onto the textbook. It became a comical sight for anyone who noticed: the notorious Silas Salvador giving his full attention to class while Ruelle Peregrine had her mind wandering elsewhere.

Two hours passed, and a familiar chime snapped Zeke's attention away from his notes. Looking up, Professor Roselle had also paused her lecture, “Alright, that's all for today,” but before anyone could utter a word, she swiftly spoke up, “Before you go, I will be assigning a group project for you to work on. Don't worry, you can submit your work even after the tournament, but you can get extra marks if you turn it in early.”

The mere mention of ‘extra marks’ garnered everyone's attention; most likely the only thing keeping them from feeling displeased by the homework. When Amelia snapped her fingers, a piece of paper appeared in front of each student, “Get into groups of four. It can be from this class or even from Professor Wallace's. All the details are on that paper, but if you have questions, you can ask either one of us.”

Even while Amelia spoke, she already lost a majority of the class’ attention as they rose from their seats to find their group partners. Seeing that, she let out a sigh, slightly smiling. “Alright. Class dismissed.”

Zeke first took the time to read the contents on the paper:

GROUP ASSIGNMENT

(4 people)

Task

Word imagery can shape a spell's manifestation. Write at least 2 spells around any theme of your choosing. You can either use existing spells as reference, or create your own. If you choose to edit authorized spells, they must be submitted along with proof of permission from the Magic Tower.

Marks

Creativity: 5 Points

Originality: 5 Points

Understanding: 5 Points

Efficiency: 5 Points

Teamwork: 5 Points

Total: 25 Points

(Extra submissions can get you 1 Point per Spell)

Due Date

After the Ranking Tournament in 3 months time.

Early submission can grant you up to 5 extra marks. Depending on the quality of your work.

Wanting to discuss their potential group partners, Zeke turned to Circe, though she'd already gotten one step ahead of him as she conversed with the students sitting next to them. When she felt his gaze on her, she faced him.

“Oh, you don't mind letting these two join our group, right?” Circe pointed behind her with a thumb. Although briefly, he saw the students’ smiles fading ever so slightly when he looked at them. “Let me introduce you, this girl here is Irelia Clover, and the boy next to her is Johan Lox.”

“Hello,” Irelia looked at Zeke meekly as she gave a small wave. Her appearance stood out quite a bit. She has unique, long forest-green hair, with a pair of emerald eyes that shimmered like real jewelry as sunlight struck her porcelain face. “Spell Theory isn't our fort, so I hope we won't be too much of a burden…”

Johan nodded along, a hint of nervousness flickering across his amber eyes. Even with his head slightly lowered, his long ginger bangs failed to hide his expression. “But we will help with anything you ask of us, Lord Salvador…”

The boy's polite words caught him off guard for a bit. Glancing at Circe, Zeke carefully chose his next words. “No need to be so formal. You can just call me Silas. I saw that you were talking with my lady just fine, so feel free to do the same with me.”

“Ah,” Johan's eyes turned round as he looked up. He quickly turned away when his cheeks started to turn red. “I’m sorry…it's because the lady was so friendly to us that I forgot our difference in status…”

Circe chuckled at his modesty, “It's okay. As long as we're in the academy, our status outside doesn't matter.”

“B-but…” Johan pursed his lips, “At the very least, Irelia is the daughter of a merchant's guild master. I'm just a commoner with no standing…”

“Who cares?” Zeke shrugged, trying to ignore the fact that it came out harsher than he expected. “Just be comfortable, we'll be seeing each other quite often anyway.”

“Right,” Irelia gave Johan a bright smile, patting him on the shoulder. Her small gesture uplifted his tensed form as he smiled back, seeing this, she turned to Zeke. “So, when are we starting this project?”

“How about after school?” He suggested, to which everyone nodded along in agreement.

Irelia spoke, “Sure, me and Johan hung around in the library at that time anyway. Let's meet there?”

Zeke and Circe exchanged a brief glance, before the latter replied, “Alright, that works.”

“Great!” Irelia beamed as she stood up, her demeanor just now contrasted the nervousness she showed at the beginning, though it seemed that she simply got more comfortable knowing Silas Salvador wasn’t going to bite her. By then, the other students had already begun leaving for their next class, “We'll see you all after school!”